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Saturday, 3 January 2015

Pakistan tonight
resorted to heavy mortar shelling and firing on several BSF posts along the
International Border in Samba and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir,
drawing a strong retaliation from India that left two Pakistan Rangers dead.

BSF sources said
they had got reports that five Rangers had been killed in the exchange of fire
since Thursday, with two casualties post 9.30 pm. Today's ceasefire violation
was the fourth by the Rangers in as many days and eighth in the past nine days.

BSF Director
General DK Pathak, who briefed Home Minister Rajnath Singh at 10 pm said the
force had thwarted a "major infiltration attempt" from across the
border tonight and his troops were on high alert.

Singh had ordered
the BSF to respond with "appropriate" action following continuous
ceasefire violation. The Home Minister said the firing was unprovoked.

Earlier, the Home
Minister said there was no doubt that Pakistan was trying to push militants
into J&K and giving cover to such attempts by continuous firing along the
border.

A senior police
officer in Jammu said: "Pakistan Rangers resorted to heavy firing and
mortar shelling along the IB in Samba and Hiranagar sectors of J&K since
9.35 pm.” Also, BSF Inspector General Rakesh Sharma said all BoPs falling in
three battalion areas of Samba and Hiranagar were being fired upon by Pakistan
amid mortar shelling. Mortar shelling had also hit civilian areas, he
said.— PTI

Resolution against
India

Pakistan’s
political leaders on Friday adopted a resolution against India, condemning the
killing of four Pakistan soldiers in BSF firing on December 31. The All Parties
Conference, which met in Islamabad, took dim view of the incident in which
Rangers were killed. A statement by the Prime Minister’s Office said the
"cowardly and unethical act" of the BSF was in violation of international
norms.

Four occupants
blow up suspicious vessel from Karachi after hot chase by Coast Guard

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January
2

A suspicious
Pakistani fishing vessel, believed to be loaded with explosives, blew up and
sank off the coast of Gujarat after being challenged and intercepted by the
Indian Coast Guard, officials said on Friday.

The boat — which
had set off from ‘Keti Bandar’, a small port near Karachi, on the eve of New
Year — turned into a ball of fire and sank after its occupants, believe to be
four in number, set it ablaze early Thursday.

“The 15-metre-long Pakistani
boat, suspected to be carrying explosives, sunk in the wee hours on January 1
after its crew set the boat afire,’ said Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson
Sitanshu Kar.

The dramatic incident —a reminder of the manner in which 10
Pakistani terrorists sneaked into Mumbai in 2008 — occurred 365 km (197
nautical miles) south west off Porbandar.

Darkness and bad weather
prevented the Coast Guard from apprehending any of the crew as the crew sank in
the Arabian Sea along with the vessel. Indian intelligence agencies received a
tip-off on December 31 about the boat sailing out and heading for an ‘illicit
transaction’ in the Arabian Sea. A Dornier surveillance plane of the Coast
Guard was dispatched and it identified the boat sailing towards India. KR
Nautiyal, Deputy Director General (Operations & Coastal Security) of the
Coast Guard, said: "We diverted our surface vessel to intercept the
suspicious entity”.

The Coast Guard ship
intercepted the unlit boat around midnight on December 31.The Coast Guard ship warned the fishing boat
to stop for further investigation of the crew and cargo. However, the boat
increased its speed and tried to escape away from the Indian side of maritime
boundary. The hot pursuit continued for nearly one hour and the Coast Guard
ship managed to stop the fishing boat after firing warning shots.

“Four persons were seen on the
boat who disregarded all warnings by the Coast Guard ship to stop and cooperate
with investigation. They later hid in the lower deck of the boat and set it on
fire, which resulted in an explosion and major fire following which the boat
sank along with its occupants,” said the MoD spokesperson.

Defence Minister Manohar
Parrikar complimented the Coast Guard “for intercepting the rogue vessel off
the coast of Gujarat, in a timely and precise manner, thereby, averting a
possible terror strike”.

Earlier, Union Home Minister
Rajnath Singh accused Pakistan of trying to push terrorists into Jammu and
Kashmir and giving cover to such attempts by continuous firing along the
border.

With US President Barrack
Obama slated to visit India for the Republic Day function, Indian agencies
suspectthat Pak-based terrorist groups
were planning to carry out “spectacular attacks”.

After a specific
input that a 15-metre boat has sailed out of Keti Bandar (port) near Karachi
for India, Coast Guard dispatches Dornier aircraft for investigation

Dec 31: Around noon,
the

aircraft spots the
“suspicious boat” around 365 km off Porbandar in Gujarat.

Coast Guard ship
‘Rajrattan’ is asked to sail to the spot.

2:30 pm: A back-up
plane keeps track of the boat

5 pm: Another
Dornier flies to track the Pakistani boat

1 am: The Coast
Guard patrol vessel reaches the spot and sights an unlit boat. Occupants of the
boat are asked to stop and warning shots are fired. The boat, however, tries to
speed away. The vessel is chased in high seas for one hour and is finally stopped
by the Coast Guard.

3.30 am: Four
persons are seen on the boat, who quickly hide themselves in the lower deck
compartment and set the boat afire, which results in a major explosion. The
boat sinks on the spot

Five Pakistan
Rangers have been killed since Thursday after Indian security forces retaliated
to heavy firing near the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir.

The ceasefire
violations continued on Friday evening, when Pakistani Rangers resorted to
heavy mortar shelling and firing on Border Security Force or BSF posts in
Jammu's Samba and Hiranagar sectors. Cross-border firing is still going on in
the two sectors. (Baseless, Says India on Pakistan's Allegations over
Cross-Border Firing)

Home Minister
Rajnath Singh ordered the BSF to respond with 'appropriate' action to the
cross-border firing; the firing was unprovoked, said the Home Ministry

Today's ceasefire
violation was the fourth by the Rangers in as many days and the eighth in the
last nine days.

On Tuesday, a BSF
jawan was killed when Pakistani Rangers fired on a group of Indian soldiers on
patrol.

India had returned
fire and four Pakistani soldiers were killed in retaliation. India stopped
firing when Pakistan Rangers raised a white flag, requesting time to remove the
bodies.

In a letter to
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today, Pakistan's Foreign Affairs
Adviser Sartaj Aziz had alleged that India killed two Pakistani Rangers after
calling them for a meeting on the International Border on December 31.

Was the Pakistani
boat which sank off the coast of Porbandar in Gujarat in the early hours of
January 1 carrying "explosives" or was it just part of a flourishing
smuggling racket between India and Pakistan and carrying much harmless cargo
like diesel?

The Ministry of
Defence (MoD), in its written statement issued earlier today, said the Coast
Guard had intercepted a "suspect boat carrying explosives" that was
"planning some illicit transaction in Arabian Sea." A transaction is
necessarily between two parties.

Also, sources tell
NDTV that Indian security agencies picked up information about the fishing boat
early in the morning of December 31 which suggested that the vessel had left
Keti Bunder - a small fishing port north of Karachi.The Coast Guard launched
the first

Related

Pakistani Boat With Explosives Blows Up Off
Gujarat Coast, Says Government

Dornier - a
maritime surveillance aircraft - at 11.30 am in the morning. The ship was
spotted in the Indian waters. "It was idling and appeared to be waiting
for instructions," a senior Coast Guard official told NDTV.

The intercept,
sources tell NDTV, talked about very "expensive cargo" - each between
Rs. 4-5 lakh - which was on its way to India. It also talked about how those on
the Indian side had been "paid" to receive the cargo, implying
someone in the Indian waters was waiting to pick up the cargo. The Defence
Ministry and the Government seemed to be ill at ease to explain what happened
to the second party that was to receive the "illicit" cargo. What the
vessel was carrying "is a matter of investigation," Inspector General
of Operations of the Coast Guard, KR Nautiyal told NDTV.

Also, if the
Pakistani vessel was laden with weapons and terrorists were on board, then the
fact that the men did not put up an opposition but instead chose to evade the
Coast Guard ship seems surprising.

The Coast Guard
Ship "Raj Rattan" - a Fast Patrol Craft - which was sent after the
Pakistani boat sails at a maximum speed of 30 nautical miles per hour and is
sturdy enough to be at sea for two weeks continuously. But the Pakistani boat -
which from pictures released appears to be a single-engine vessel - still
managed to stay ahead of it for over an hour. The MoD, in its statement, says
that when challenged, "the boat increased speed and tried to escape away
from the Indian side of maritime boundary. The hot pursuit continued for nearly
one hour and the Coast Guard Ship managed to stop the fishing boat after firing
warning shots".

India Requires
Russia, S. Korea to Partner With Local Firms in Helo Contest

India's Defence
Ministry has decided that South Korea and Russia must partner with Indian firms
in order to take part in its helicopter competition, despite offers of complete
technology transfer, according to an MoD source.

South Korea is
offering its Surion light utility helicopter (LUH) and Russia its Ka-226
machine. Russian President Vladimir Putin made the offer during his Dec. 11
visit to India.

"MoD's
decision to buy LUH only through competition from domestic vendors is a virtual
rejection of any government-to-government helicopter production deal between
India and Russia," said defense analyst Nitin Mehta.

The MoD source,
however, said the decision not to enter a joint program with either South Korea
or Russia is part of a policy to boost the domestic private sector defense
industry, and that the MoD would like to see partnerships for weapons programs
with overseas companies.

After coming to
power, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi canceled two global
tenders for light utility helicopter purchases and approached the domestic
companies to participate in the procurement of unspecified numbers of
helicopters, either alone or in partnership with an overseas company.

India needs 440
LUHs to replace its aging Cheetah and Chetak helicopters used for
reconnaissance and logistics in the high altitude battlefields in the
Himalayas.

After the summit
talks with Putin, Modi said in a statement: "I am pleased that Russia has
offered to fully manufacture in India one of its most advanced helicopters. It
includes the possibility of exports from India. It can be used for both
military and civilian use. We will follow up on this quickly."

South Korea has
also offered India full tech transfer of the Surion helicopter, the MoD source
said. A diplomat from the South Korean Embassy in New Delhi confirmed that a
proposal was been made to India in December, but gave no details.

In August, MoD
canceled the 2012 tender for the purchase of 56 naval utility helicopters, in
which Airbus Helicopters and AgustaWestland were in the race.

In July, MoD
canceled the 2008 global tender for the purchase of 197 light utility
helicopters worth $1 billion, in which now Airbus Helicopters' AS550 was in competition
with Russia's Ka-226T built by Kamov.

India's helicopter
requirement is expected to grow to 600. In addition, the MoD also plans to
procure 90 multirole helicopters worth $2.5 billion through the "Buy and
Make (India)" route.

"Except for
state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited [HAL], no private-sector defense
major has ever produced a military helicopter," Mehta said. "But in
the future, tie-ups are expected with overseas defense companies to tap the
emerging helicopter market."

US-based Sikorsky
and Tata Group already have an agreement, and in October, Airbus Helicopters
also announced a tie-up with the Tata to jointly produce Avro transport
aircraft.

NEW DELHI: Changes
in the Defence Procurement Policy to legalise representatives from foreign
defence firms will be done in another month and a half, Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar said.

He also said that
the ministry is thinking of giving conditioned and limited approval to dealing
with banned firms, and a ban has been lifted to get spare parts for Tatra
trucks.

"Representatives
from defence firms are already allowed in the Defence Procurement Policy... the
problem is it does not say what is not acceptable," Parrikar said Tuesday
night during an interaction with journalists.

"Changes will
be made to the DPP, representatives will be allowed but commission, or percentage
of profit for the deals will not be allowed. The representative's remuneration
shall be declared by the company," he said.

Parrikar added
that a draft of the changed policy is ready and a final draft will be ready in
another 8-10 days. It will then go through further procedures before going to
the union cabinet.

"The process
shall be completed in another one and a half months," said Parrikar, but
noted that those agents who have been banned by the ministry will not be
permitted under the new arrangement.

He also said that
banned firms can be conditionally allowed.

"Based on
merit and necessity, one can think of lifting the ban to a reasonable
level," he said.

Parrikar said the
state-run Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) has been allowed to supplying
spare parts for Tatra trucks, as long as it does not deal with the British
subsidiary of the company, which was banned following irregularities in its
deal with BEML.

"Limited NoC
(no objection certificate) has been given to BEML because we need Tatra
trucks," he said.

Army Wasn't Late
in Reacting to Bodo Attack

Parrikar denied
that the army was late in reacting to the attack by Bodo militants in Assam,
and said they had to wait for a request from the local administration.

"We were
alert about the attack even before the news was flashed in the media. The armed
forces stationed there were ready, but we had to wait for request from local
administration," Parrikar said.

"As soon as
the local administration requested, we deployed the forces," he said.

The minister said
73 columns of the army were now deployed in Assam, where Bodo militants
massacred dozens of tribals two days before Christmas.

BRO to be brought
fully under defence ministry

Border Road
Organisation (BRO) will be brought fully under the defence ministry and
non-sensitive roads in border areas will be handed over to the National
Highways Authority of India, said Parrikar.

The BRO is
presently under both road transport and defence ministries. While the former
allocates funds, the latter has executive control.

Parrikar said dual
control has led to a sad state of affairs in the organisation.

"The BRO will
be brought fully under the defence ministry. There was lot of confusion because
it was under two masters," he said.

"By the next
budget it will be under defence ministry completely," he said.

The minister added
that nearly 3,000 km of roads will be transferred to NHAI in the areas which
are not sensitive.

On the question of
a rail link along India-China border, he said he will soon hold meetings with
Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.

On China's
objections to infrastructure development in the border areas, Parrikar
dismissed them. "What we do on our side of the border is not their
business," he said.

Ban on Tatra
trucks lifted partially, new defence policy to have ‘Make in India’ stamp:
Parrikar

The government is
open to reviewing all cases of blacklisted defence firms on merit and has
partially lifted a ban on Tatra trucks as it prepares a new policy that will
allow foreign defence firms to legally hire agents, Defence Minister Manohar
Parrikar said.

The new Defence
Procurement Policy (DPP), that will lay thrust on development of domestic
defence industry and faster acquisition process, will be issued in another
month and a half.

Asked about the
new government’s policy on blacklisted firms, Parrikar said, the “debarment
principle” is also being worked out and pointed out the basic principle is in
the interest of the armed forces.

“So if I have to deal with a
firm which does have some earlier colour on it, it will based on merit,”
Parrikar said in an interaction with journalists late last night here.

He added that based on merit
and necessity, the government can “consider after proper verification, lifting
the ban or restriction to a reasonable level”.

Explaining the process, he
said the state-run BEML has been allowed to supply spare parts for the Tatra
trucks as long as it does not deal with the British subsidiary of the company,
which was banned by the UPA following a scandal.

“We have lifted the restricted
ban for technical and purchases of spares from the original company provided
they have nothing to do with the people who have been blacklisted,” he said.

Parrikar pointed out that one
should not just go by the name Tatra as there are 3-4 companies which make the
trucks. “The company which has been banned is Tatra UK and we have permitted
BEML to deal with the original company which is owned by different people now,”
he said, adding the condition is that they should not have relations with
“questionable individuals”.

“A restricted Non Objection
Certificate has been granted to BEML, because we do need for defence purpose
Tatra vehicles. It has become critical for certain applications,” he said.

Heavy vehicle maker Tatra was
banned in March 2012 after the then Army Chief General (retd) V K Singh’s
allegations that he was offered bribe to clear “sub-standard trucks” supplied
by the company to the Indian Army.

Parrikar said that a draft of
the changed policy is ready and a final draft will be ready in another 8-10
days. It will then go through further procedures before going to the Union
Cabinet.

“The process shall be
completed in another one and a half months,” he said.

Defence Ministry sources said
a blanket ban on defence firms has proved to be detrimental to the interests of
the armed forces as it cripples the procurement process.

“The thinking is that there
cannot be a blanket ban on defence firms. Measured steps can be taken and the
policy will outline what steps would be taken for various offences, if
committed,” the sources said.

Under UPA Defence Minister A K
Antony, a number of companies were blacklisted due to alleged cases of
corruption. The last major one was that of Italian defence giant Finmeccanica
in a Rs 3,600 crore deal on VVIP helicopters.

BRO to be brought
exclusively under defence ministry: Manohar Parrikar

In a bid to boost
India’s border road connectivity especially along China, the Border Roads
Organisation (BRO) will be entirely brought under the ministry of defence by
the next budget. Around 6,000-7,000 km of non-sensitive roads in border areas
will be handed over to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), defence
minister Manohar Parrikar said. The BRO receives funds from the ministry of
road transport and highways but undertakes the tasks assigned by the ministry
of defence. The dual control of BRO is one of the principal reasons behind
non-availability of funds and the organization’s not-up-to-the-mark
performance, officials said. “BRO will be brought fully under the defence
ministry. There was lot of confusion because it was under two masters,”
Parrikar said, adding that the process would be completed by the next budget.
In the last two years, BRO received more than Rs.110 crore less than what it
wanted from the road transport ministry. Parrikar, in an interaction with
journalists here last night, said, “Work ethics (in BRO) have to be improved”.
Road connectivity to border areas is a major force multiplier in conflict situations,
as they are crucial for rapid troop movement and equipment mobilization.
Incidentally, the BRO has failed to meet the deadlines in 73 strategic road
projects on the India-China border, cleared by the cabinet committee on
security in June 2006. The deadline to complete the 3,500 km road build up was
2012. But so far only over 500 km of roads have been built, and the deadline
has been extended to 2016. On the question of a rail link along the China-India
border, the minister said he will soon hold meetings with railway minister
Suresh Prabhu. On China’s objections to infrastructure development in the
border areas, Parrikar just said, “What we do on our side of the border is our
business.” Parrikar also said the government is open to reviewing all cases of
blacklisted defence firms on merit and has partially lifted a ban on Tatra
trucks as it prepares a new policy that will allow foreign defence firms to
legally hire agents. The new Defence Procurement Policy (DPP), which will lay
thrust on development of domestic defence industry and faster acquisition
process, will be issued in another month and a half. Asked about the new
government’s policy on blacklisted firms, Parrikar said, the “debarment
principle” is also being worked out and pointed out the basic principle is in
the interest of the armed forces. “So if I have to deal with a firm which does
have some earlier colour on it, it will based on merit,” Parrikar said in an
interaction with journalists late on Tuesday night in New Delhi. He added that
based on merit and necessity, the government can “consider after proper
verification, lifting the ban or restriction to a reasonable level”. Explaining
the process, he said state-run BEML has been allowed to supply spare parts for
the Tatra trucks as long as it does not deal with the British subsidiary of the
company, which was banned by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) following a
scandal. “We have lifted the restricted ban for technical and purchases of
spares from the original company provided they have nothing to do with the
people who have been blacklisted,” he said. Parrikar pointed out that one
should not just go by the name Tatra as there are three-four companies which
make the trucks. “The company which has been banned is Tatra UK and we have permitted
BEML to deal with the original company which is owned by different people now,”
he said, adding the condition is that they should not have relations with
“questionable individuals”. “A restricted no-objection certificate has been
granted to BEML, because we do need for defence purpose Tatra vehicles. It has
become critical for certain applications,” he said. Heavy vehicle maker Tatra
was banned in March 2012 after the then army chief V.K. Singh’s allegations
that he was offered bribe to clear “sub-standard trucks” supplied by the
company to the Indian Army.